On a clear day, you can see forever… or so it might seem. This picture was taken from the summit of Slumgullion Pass. We had a clear view of Red Mountain Pass, located in the San Juan Mountains, 190 miles away.

Also present in the photo is the famous Earthflow. Our misadventure began on the way down the pass leading to Lake City. The road is very winding and steep (speed limit in some places – 10mph) and, like many travelers before us, we burned the breaks down to mush by the time we descended. Luckily, we pulled over near Lake San Cristobal, enjoyed the beauty of the lake and a brief thunderstorm, and then returned to the car to find that the brakes had aired back up. We met other families in Lake City who were not so fortunate. They were stranded there for a few days waiting for brake parts to arrive. So many people had similar accidents that the auto repair shop had run out of parts. McClure Pass is another likely spot for overheated brakes. It is on the West Elk Scenic Highway loop and can be tricky to maneuver for those with automatic transmissions. 

The byway climbs 11,000-foot Slumgullion Pass and crosses the Continental Divide. It crosses the Slumgullion Earthflow, a National Natural Landmark. The 700-year-old mudflow is four miles long and 2,000 feet wide. Some sections are moving 28 feet a year. Decades ago, the earthflow dammed the Lake Fork of the Gunnison River and created Lake San Cristobal. The three-square mile lake is the second largest natural lake in Colorado.

You can stop and visit the graves of people eaten by Alfred Packer, Colorado's infamous cannibal. The graves are located four miles south of Lake City at the base of Cannibal Plateau.

There are many hiking and HOV trails  located along the Silver Thread Byway. La Garita, Big Blue and Weminuche Wilderness areas can be seen from the byway. North Clear Creek Falls are halfway between Lake City and Creede. Six Forest Service campgrounds are near the byway.

The beauty of the Sangre de Cristos and surrounding area seems incomparable - until you reach the San Juan Mountains. I’ll admit, it was a close toss up, but the San Juans won out for being the most scenic. We took the Durango/Silverton train ride, starting out from Durango with 6 rolls of film. When we reached Silverton, we had to buy more film. There’s a photograph waiting around every bend and from each side of the open cars. Don’t even take the trip if you plan on sitting in the closed cars. You may as well drive….